Speaker to quit today
Chandigarh, January 11
The Speaker of the Haryana Assembly, Mr H.S. Chatha, will resign tomorrow in view of his possible induction into the Hooda Cabinet, according to sources.
Mr Chatha’s resignation will come on the eve of the emergency session of the Vidhan Sabha, opening from January 13.

Bonanza awaits legislators
Chandigarh, January 11
There will be the customary verbal duels between the Opposition and ruling party members in the coming session of the Haryana Assembly, but at the end of the session all MLAs will go home laughing.

Driving licences to be delivered through courier
Hisar, January 11
The vehicle registration and licencing authorities have decided to send registration certificates and driving licences to the persons concerned through courier service.
Besides, it has also been decided to affix three-dimensional hologram on the licences and registration cards to check use of coloured photocopies of these documents.

Women to man licensing work
Sonepat, January 11
The Deputy Commissioner, Ms Neerja Shekhar, today appointing women employees in the driving licence branches based at Sonepat, Ganaur and Gohana subdivisions in this district.

One more loom worker crushed to death
Panipat, January 11
Another worker crushed to death in a power loom here today. Unrest prevailed among workers here. They raised slogans against the Hooda government for not taking the labour problem seriously.

Two killed as bus overturns
Jhajjar, January 11
Two persons were killed and at least 17 others injured when a private bus overturned near Beri here today.
The victims were travelling in the bus, which was going from Beri to Jhajjar.

Eight hurt as train hits bus
Panipat, January 11
Eight persons were injured in a train-bus collision at an unmanned level crossing near here this afternoon.
The injured were admitted to the local Bhim Sain Sachhar Hospital and the condition of three of them was serious.

2 held for killing nephew
Sonepat, January 11
The Mohana police on Monday claimed that it had arrested two persons on a charge of murdering their nephew and injuring another nephew last month following a dispute over agricultural land.

Thieves decamp with car, cash
Karnal, January 11
Thieves decamped with a car, cash and other items after striking at the house of Mr Inder Singh, Inspector with the Food and Supplies Department, posted at Jundla. The thieves also put on fire the furniture lying in the house before fleeing from the victim’s house situated in Sector 7 here last night.

Jains ready for Lord Bahubali’s anointing
Ambala, January 11
Preparations are complete for the anointing ceremony of the statue of Lord Bahubali in
Shravanbelagola. Mr Ashok Jain, a non-government member of the Mahamastkabhisheka committee of the Karnataka government, said the ceremony took place once in 12 years.

Action against schools for flouting DC’s order
Karnal, January 11
The police booked managers and directors of three schools for flouting the DC’s order of closing the school till Thursday due to the ongoing cold wave.
According to a police spokesman, FIRs were filed today against Dr Brij Pal and Mr Satish Sharma, managers of Arya Vidya Mandir,
Kohand, and SD Harit Modern School, Kohand, respectively for not following the DC’s order.

Suggestions for unrecognised schools
Ambala, January 11
Mr Kulbhushan Sharma, president, Federation of Unrecognised Schools Welfare Association, today said that the number of rooms should be equal to the number of classes with two additional rooms. “A maximum 30 per cent of plot area should remain open and separate toilets for boys and girls should be made”, he said.

IT officer gets judicial remand
Ambala, January 11
An income tax officer of Kaithal, Mr Gurdev Singh, who was arrested by a team of the CBI while taking a bribe of Rs 20,000 from a rice miller yesterday was produced in a local court here today. It remanded him in judicial custody till January 24.

Chandigarh, January 11
The Speaker of the Haryana Assembly, Mr H.S. Chatha, will resign tomorrow in view of his possible induction into the Hooda Cabinet, according to sources.

Mr Chatha’s resignation will come on the eve of the emergency session of the Vidhan Sabha, opening from January 13. The Governor, Dr A.R. Kidwai, will deliver his Address to the House with the Deputy Speaker, Mr Azad Mohd, in the chair.

The new Speaker will be elected after the Governor’s Address.

The Chief Minister, Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda, is expected to expand his Cabinet on January 15. While Mr Chatha’s induction into the Cabinet is certain, the names of the other contenders are still a matter of speculation. So is the name of the new Speaker. However, Dr Raghbir Singh Kadian, MLA from Beri, is believed to be the frontrunner for the post. Mrs Savitri Jindal, MLA from Hisar, and Mrs Kiran Choudhary, MLA from Tosham, are also believed to be contenders for Cabinet slots.

According to sources, Mr Hooda has sounded certain Ministers also to accept the post of Speaker. The Ministers are believed to have expressed their reluctance. A political analyst jokingly remarked that an SHO posted in a police station is better placed than an Inspector-General of Police posted as OSD, Rules. He said this was the reason why no Minister wanted to accept a Constitutional post higher than that of a Cabinet Minister in protocol.

The first expansion of the Hooda Cabinet may also see the reshuffling of portfolios of some of the Ministers.

Chandigarh, January 11
There will be the customary verbal duels between the Opposition and ruling party members in the coming session of the Haryana Assembly, but at the end of the session all MLAs will go home laughing.

Because, a Bill allowing a Rs 75,000 annual bonanza to each legislator is slated to be presented in the session commencing on Friday. The Chief Minister, Mr Bhupinder Singh Hooda, announced at the session held last month that the annual free travel allowance of the MLAs would be enhanced from Rs 1.25 lakh to Rs 2 lakh. He had also announced doing away with the clause of providing travel documents (air and train tickets, cab bills, etc) by the legislators to claim the amount. The Bill to implement this step is expected to be moved in the coming session.

At its last session also, the Assembly had passed three Bills to substantially increase the salaries and allowances of the Speaker, the Deputy Speaker and ministers and allowances and pensions of MLAs. The Bills, which put a financial burden of Rs 68.21 lakh per annum on the state exchequer, however, are yet to be cleared by the Governor.

The short notice of the session has meanwhile resulted in some hiccups in the Assembly as well as in the government. The staff in the Assembly has been trying to piece together enough questions for question hour. According to the rules, there must be a minimum gap of 15 days between sending a question and its coming up before the Assembly. The gap is needed to enable the department concerned to prepare a reply. Since the coming session of the Assembly has been called only four days in advance, no question received after the Assembly was summoned on Tuesday will come up before the House. However, questions coming to the Assembly after the last session was prorogued, which satisfy the 15 days’ gap clause, can figure during question hour.

There is going to be no question hour on Friday, the inaugural day. So, adeuate number questions for the remaining days of the session are needed. A short session will obviously take care of the problem.

Hisar, January 11
The vehicle registration and licencing authorities have decided to send registration certificates and driving licences to the persons concerned through courier service.

Besides, it has also been decided to affix three-dimensional hologram on the licences and registration cards to check use of coloured photocopies of these documents. For the courier service, the residents of Hisar town would have to pay an amount of Rs 10, Rs 15 in the case of the residents of rural areas in the district. The said amount would be collected as donations towards the District Child Welfare Society, which would engage a private courier service for the purpose.

Sub-Divisional Magistrate, Amit Kumar Aggarwal, said earlier, the residents had to come to the office to collect their documents.

“Apart from causing inconvenience to the people, it led to the wastage of lots of man hours. Hence, to streamline the procedure, we have decided to send the driving licences as well as vehicle registration certificates through courier,” Dr Aggarwal maintained.

To control the courier firm, a security amount would be deposited in advance. “A certain amount would be deducted from this security deposit of the courier firm in case they fail to deliver the documents by the third day of dispatch,” the SDM maintained.

In another move, the first of its kind in the state, tamper-proof three-dimensional holograms would be affixed on the driving licences and vehicle registration certificates. “This step has been taken to check the illegal practice of carrying coloured photocopies of these vital documents,” Dr Aggarwal said. He said it had been noticed that many vehicle owners or drivers used to carry coloured photocopies of their licences or registration cards.

After being challaned, they simply submitted these identical photocopies to the officials and never returned to clear the challan.

“It will not be possible to obtain identical photocopies of these documents due to the 3-D stickers,” he affirmed, adding that both these decisions would come into effect from January 15.

Sonepat, January 11
The Deputy Commissioner, Ms Neerja Shekhar, today appointing women employees in the driving licence branches based at Sonepat, Ganaur and Gohana subdivisions in this district.

According to a report, the new experiment is aimed at launching a vigorous drive against corruption prevalent in these branches. The women employees, it is said, will not adopt corrupt practices in issuing driving licences. The action of the Deputy Commissioner has caused panic among the middlemen who managed to get the driving licences by giving bribe to male clerks.

Official sources revealed that Ms Ajit Kaur has been appointed as the driving licence clerk in the office of the SDM, Sonepat. Similarly, Ms Luxmi has been posted as licencing clerk in the office of the SDM Ganaur. Ms Usha has been posted as the licencing clerk in the office of the SDM Gohana.

The Deputy Commissioner has also ordered the transfer of all registry clerks in the tehsil offices of Sonepat, Ganaur, Kharkhauda and Gohana with immediate effect.

Panipat, January 11
Another worker crushed to death in a power loom here today. Unrest prevailed among workers here. They raised slogans against the Hooda government for not taking the labour problem seriously.

Mr Babu Lal a resident of Azamgarh district in UP was crushed to death at Ram Textiles on the Gangapuri road, this morning. Slogans-raising workers at Bhim Sen Sachar Hospital alleged that Babu Lal was killed when he was working at the loom. Workers alleged that a gadget to stop running loom was missing and it led to an accident.

Yesterday, two workers died in a fire in Wadhwa Ram Colony. Workers expressed their resentment over poor safety measures through protests.

Addressing the agitated workers at the civil hospital, IFTU president, P.P. Kapoor condemned the district administration for overlooking safety requirements in various units in the town.

Criticising the state government and the district administration, Mr Kapoor said that despite several mishaps at workplaces, the authorities had failed to take an action against the “erring” factory owners.

He said that in less than 17-days, five workers had died due to fire or other reasons. He demanded action against the officials, who had failed to ensure safety in factories.

Meanwhile, the owner of Ram Textiles had given Rs 2 lakh to the family of the deceased.

Sonepat, January 11
The Mohana police on Monday claimed that it had arrested two persons on a charge of murdering their nephew and injuring another nephew last month following a dispute over agricultural land.

The arrested have been identified as Raju and Sunil, alias Peela. They were hiding in a deserted ‘kotha’ of a tubewell near Tihar village. When the police conducted a raid there, they jumped down from the kotha and sustained injuries. The police recovered some other weapons from them.

The alleged assailants had fired shots at Ram Krishan and his brother following a dispute over 2.5 acres of agricultural land on December 31. This resulted in the death of Ram Krishan and injuries to Ram Kanwar. Ram Kanwar is still under treatment. The Mohana police had registered a case against Prithi Singh, his three sons Raju, Jasbir and Dhoopa and their friend Sunil, alias
Peela. — OC

Karnal, January 11
Thieves decamped with a car, cash and other items after striking at the house of Mr Inder Singh, Inspector with the Food and Supplies Department, posted at Jundla. The thieves also put on fire the furniture lying in the house before fleeing from the victim’s house situated in Sector 7 here last night.

According to police sources, when the victim woke up after hearing some noise, he was surprised to see the gate of his house open and the furniture burning.

The Inspector cried for help. At this, other members of his family and several neighbourers gathered there and put out the fire.

Mr Inder Singh found his Santro car, a music system, a mobile telephone set and a lady’s purse missing from his house. The purse contained Rs 2,500, an ATM card and several documents.

The matter was reported to the Civil Lines police, which registered an FIR under Sections 380, 436 and 497, IPC, against unknown thieves.

Ambala, January 11
Preparations are complete for the anointing ceremony of the statue of Lord Bahubali in Shravanbelagola.

Mr Ashok Jain, a non-government member of the Mahamastkabhisheka committee of the Karnataka government, said the ceremony took place once in 12 years.

“This year, the Mahamastkabhisheka is the first of the new millennium. It is a very special occasion,” he said.

Mr Ashok Jain said the occasion was of considerable significance not only for the Jain community but also for people from different faiths.

He said during the Mahamastkabhisheka ceremony, priests and devotees would climb the steps leading to the 57 feet statue and they would then further climb a special scaffolding.

He said that the statue of Lord Bahubali, also known as Gomateshwara, would be anointed, among other things, with tender coconut, sugarcane juice, milk, rice flour, turmeric paste, kashaya, shrigandha, chandana, ashtagandha, saffron, precious stones, gold and silver flowers.

Mr Ashok Jain said lakhs of devotees from different parts of the country and abroad were going to congregate at Shravanbelgola for the
Mahamastka-bhisheka.

Karnal, January 11
The police booked managers and directors of three schools for flouting the DC’s order of closing the school till Thursday due to the ongoing cold wave.

According to a police spokesman, FIRs were filed today against Dr Brij Pal and Mr Satish Sharma, managers of Arya Vidya Mandir, Kohand, and SD Harit Modern School, Kohand, respectively for not following the DC’s order. Separate FIRs under Section 188, IPC, were filed against them on the complaint of Gharaunda Tehsildar Joginder
Chhokar.

Ambala, January 11
Mr Kulbhushan Sharma, president, Federation of Unrecognised Schools Welfare Association, today said that the number of rooms should be equal to the number of classes with two additional rooms. “A maximum 30 per cent of plot area should remain open and separate toilets for boys and girls should be made”, he said.

He said the area for each student should be 7 sq ft for primary classes, 8 sq ft for middle classes, 9 sq feet for secondary classes and 10 sq ft for senior secondary classes.

The width of the staircase should be 3 ft. Another staircase may be provided if the strength of students is above 200.

Ambala, January 11
An income tax officer of Kaithal, Mr Gurdev Singh, who was arrested by a team of the CBI while taking a bribe of Rs 20,000 from a rice miller yesterday was produced in a local court here today. It remanded him in judicial custody till January 24.

The DSP, CBI, Mr S.S. Sandhu, produced Mr Gurdev Singh in the court.

Reghubir Singh, partners in Bajrang Rice Mill, Pundari, had filed a complaint with the Chandigarh office of the CBI that Gurdev Singh had been demanding Rs 25,000, from him for finalising his assessment in an income tax case.

The CBI team conducted a raid at Kaithal and nabbed the income tax officer while taking the bribe.